The Social Archeology Channel

From the Cleavers to the Brady clan, the stereotypical sitcom family has typically been portrayed as one of angelic faces and dinner table chats. They are perfect in a way that most families could never hope to achieve in real life. Then came the Bundy family, offering a different kind of clan – a conniving, acid-tongued group of misfits that gave new meaning to the term “dysfunctional.” It wasn’t that they didn’t love each other; they just had an odd (and often hysterical) way of showing it, on the enormously popular sitcom, Married with Children. Continue reading...

For their first animated feature without Walt at the helm, Disney introduced audiences to a lovable collection of felines in the 1971 film, The Aristocats. Featuring an all-star cast of voices including Eva Gabor, Phil Harris. Scatman Crothers and Sterling Holloway, this entertaining romp through Paris and the surrounding countryside proved that, with or without their leader, the Disney name would remain synonymous with quality animated films. Continue reading...

The art of creative packaging has sold a lot of candy to a lot of kids. Find a unique way to market your confection and you could be looking at a gold mine of profits. Perhaps that was the inspiration for Gold Mine gum, little golden nuggets of chewy goodness, cleverly packaged in a burlap sack. Continue reading...

"They stick like magic!"Actually, magic had very little to do with what made a Colorform stick, rather it was just the adhesive quality of the thinly-cut plastic. The real magic lay in their ability to encourage the imagination. Colorforms were mere props, whether they resembled geometric shapes or a sitcom star. The box provided the stage; it was up to you to choose and arrange the props and, most importantly, concoct the story. Perfect for rainy days and long car trips, generations of kids have created millions of Colorform settings over the years. Continue reading...

It was enough to make your toes curl and clutch your quarters tightly in your pocket. In a sea of arcade games featuring bitmap characters and crude backgrounds, Dragon's Lair looked like a full-fledged animated movie. Released in 1983, its innovative gameplay would earn it a rightful place in arcade game history, fondly remembered by anyone who ever shelled out 50 cents to see how the enchanting story of knight versus dragon played out. Continue reading...

It is a well-known fact that in the world of cartoons, a big nose allows one to smell things at great distances. Perhaps the best example of this ability lies in a colorful creature from the South American rainforests, Ramphastos sulfuratus, or in layman’s terms, a keel-billed Toucan by the name of Sam – Toucan Sam. Continue reading...

One needn’t be Dr. Doolittle to communicate their animal counterparts. Given an equal dose of time, patience and trust, the ability to speak words are unnecessary to form bonds, to form meaningful friendships. Such was the case with young Alec and “the black” in the beloved 1979 film, The Black Stallion, a touching story of boy and horse who discover each other under the most trying of circumstances and form a friendship that will last a lifetime. Continue reading...

For those whose artistic tastes lean away from the traditional and more toward the cool, look no further than a child’s bedroom. Disregard the crayon drawing on the refrigerator. Put the coloring book down. This sort of artwork is so good, it can only truly be seen in the dark. Continue reading...